Items State recovered from Kgosi

Their use and what makes it illegal to possess them

In a recent court appearance where a charge sheet was read against former spy chief, Isaac Kgosi, items that constituted the charges were disclosed. However, not much was said as to why they are illegal to possess, especially without proper explanation and documentation.

Here are some of the items mentioned in the prosecution papers and what the State explains are used for and what may constitute an offence if one is found in possession of them.

*The armoured vest also known as bullet proof or ballistic vests found in possession of the accused resembling those of the police are designed to absorb the impact and or stop penetration of the body by a bullet. In Botswana, they are exclusively used by law enforcement officers. *Anti surveillance equipment, which is normally used by intelligence organisations to detect and prevent unlawful or unwanted monitoring. It is not the type of equipment that should be in the hands of civilians since it can be used for prevention of detection of criminal activity. This equipment is not available locally and the accused has not produced any documentation to show how they were bought and brought into the country.

*Thermal Night Vision Goggles that are used in the dark for tactical operations by law enforcement officers. These require end user certificates and the accused person has not shown any documentation how they were brought into the country.

*A Satellite phone that uses satellites for communication instead of terrestrial lines. These kinds of phones can be used for subversive activities since they cannot be monitored by law enforcement. *Pistol pouches were found in possession of the accused with no explanation as to what became of the pistols. In addition, there was a revolver pouch together with ammunition inserter and the accused has not explained what became of the revolver pistol. A Tokarev pouch was found with no sign of the Tokarev pistol, which is a semi-automatic pistol used by law enforcement.

Meanwhile, other items alleged to have been found in Kgosi’s possession are six mobile phones of which the State said it was yet to confirm from the local service providers the number of sim-cards which are registered in the name of the accused. The State, through Jet Mafuta, said it was yet to interview the Botswana Unified Revenue Service as to ascertain whether the items found in Kgosi’s possession passed through them. The case is scheduled for mention on December 7, 2021.